Monsters Under the Bed
by WittyVitale
Summary: 4-year-old Niall thinks there's a monster under his bed. He wakes up his older sister, 16-year-old Mòrag, and asks her for help. Mòrag and Brighid team up and search under Niall's bed to make sure that it's free of monsters. Pointless Mòrag/Niall family sibling fluff. Pre-canon. Possible spoiler in Author's Note.


**Author's Note: I just whipped this up in one day and it's only meant to be pointless cute fluff. I keep finding fanart on Twitter of M** **ò** **rag and Niall doing adorable sibling things. I really wish they had more scenes together in the actual game. Those two are just so cute. So I decided to write another pointless, fluffy fic. This time, we're focusing on little toddler Niall and teenager M** **ò** **rag. In my headcanon, these two are 12 years apart. I also think that teenaged M** **ò** **rag's speech would still be formal since she's royalty, but not as formal as when she's Special Inquisitor. I tried to get that across. I think that's everything. Enjoy!**

"Sister?" the small voice of four-year-old Niall whispered. He took his tiny hand and shook Mòrag's shoulder. "Sister, wake up."

16-year-old Mòrag moaned in confusion and slowly awakened. As she sat herself up, she saw her younger brother through sleepy eyes.

"Niall?" she asked groggily. She looked at the clock on her nightstand and frowned. "What are you doing awake at this hour? Are you all right?"

"There's a monster in my room," Niall said tearfully. "Under my bed."

Mòrag sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. Niall was practically still a baby, she knew it wasn't fair for her to get annoyed with him over something like this. But she was so exhausted; her Ardanian Military training had started a few weeks ago and it was far more rigorous than she envisioned. Mòrag adored her younger brother, but she didn't have the energy for his imagination at this hour.

"Niall, we've been over this; there's no monster in your room." Mòrag said as calmly as she could.

"Yes there is," Niall said, tears still threatening to fall from his eyes. "It's a Deimos Sauros, I saw the tail."

"Niall, Deimos Sauros are far too big to fit under a child-sized bed. And they're only native to Temperantia. It must have been your mind playing tricks on you. Now go back to bed."

"But I'm scared." Niall continued. He was now softly sobbing and tears fell down his face.

As agitated and desperate for sleep as Mòrag was, her conscience would not allow her to ignore her brother while he was crying next to her bed. After all, the whole reason she wanted to join the Ardanian Military was so she could protect Niall. Once he ascended to the throne and became the Emperor, he was going to need someone to act as his sword and shield. When Niall was born, Mòrag made the decision that she was going to be his retainer, and the best way to do that was to join the Ardanian Military and become stronger. She started to think of the current situation from another perspective; perhaps checking under the future Emperor's bed for monsters and allaying his fears would be good practice for a future retainer. She swung her legs over her bed and gently wiped some of the tears off of Niall's face.

"Shhhh, it's all right, Niall, don't cry," Mòrag whispered comfortingly. "Would you like me to check your room to see if the Deimos Sauros is there?"

Niall silently nodded. Mòrag reached under her own bed and pulled out her two whipswords. "Very well. And if there is a Deimos Sauros, or any other monster hiding under your bed, I'll defeat it. Does that sound good to you, Niall?" Mòrag asked her brother as she attached her swords to her waist. Niall nodded again, a small smile appearing on his face. Mòrag mirrored his smile and affectionately ruffled his hair.

"All right then. Let's go to your bedroom. And don't worry, I'll keep you safe." With that, Mòrag picked Niall up under his arms and held him protectively against her chest. She was about to leave her bedroom when she saw a soft blue light emanating from the hallway.

"Lady Mòrag?" Brighid asked as she arrived outside of Mòrag's bedroom door. "And Lord Niall? What are you two doing awake at this hour?"

"I could ask you the same thing, Brighid." Mòrag answered, equally surprised that her Blade was awake.

"Well, I stopped at Haskefell Books earlier today and found a book called _Love Beyond the Clouds_ ," Brighid began. "I thought the title sounded intriguing, so I took a chance and purchased it. It's a very enthralling read, I haven't been able to put it down all night. I lost track of time until I heard Lord Niall enter your room. So, what's your reason for being awake, my lady?"

"Ah, I see. Well I'm glad that book kept you awake, Brighid, because we could use your assistance. You can help me hunt a Deimos Sauros." Mòrag answered. Brighid was so taken aback that she almost opened her eyes.

"I can help you… what?" Brighid asked, trying to get a more definite answer.

"Mòrag's going to beat the Deimos Sauros in my room," Niall answered softly. "I can't sleep until I know it's gone. Will you please help us, Lady Brighid?"

Brighid's face softened at Niall's polite request for help. She now knew exactly what was going on and she shared a quick nod of understanding with Mòrag.

"It would be my honor, Lord Niall," Brighid replied as she placed her hand over her chest and slightly bowed. "With Lady Mòrag and I working together, we're sure to defeat any monster that dare crosses our path."

"Well said, Brighid. Come, let us go to Niall's room."

As they arrived at the child's bedroom door, the first thing Mòrag did was turn on the light.

"All right, Niall, you said that you saw the creature's tail, correct?" Mòrag asked her brother. Niall nodded. "Where exactly did you see the tail?"

"Right there." Niall pointed under the lower half of his bed.

"Understood," Mòrag said as she gently lowered Niall to the ground. "Niall, you stay here. Brighid and I will look under your bed. We'll let you know when it's safe to come inside."

"Okay, sister." Niall agreed.

"Brighid, you take the left side and I'll take the right," Mòrag instructed seriously, knowing that she needed to put on a show before Niall felt comfortable sleeping in his bed again. "That way if the creature tries to escape, he'll be blocked on both sides."

"Roger that, Lady Mòrag." Brighid answered with just as much seriousness as her Driver.

The Driver and Blade pair entered the room and took their respective positions besides Niall's bed. Mòrag removed her whipswords from her waist and softly threw one of the swords to Brighid, who caught it deftly. Brighid channeled her flames into both swords and made them shine a dangerous, radiant blue. They both crouched at the same time to look under the bed, the swords' flames being used as lanterns so they could both see what exactly was under the bed. The two looked carefully while Niall tightly gripped the doorjamb.

"Ah, what's this?" Mòrag asked as she spotted something right in the middle. She reached her hand far under the bed until she grasped the item she found.

"W-what is it?" Niall asked nervously.

"Well, Niall, there's no Deimos Sauros or any other monster under your bed," Mòrag started as she looked at the item she pulled out. "But I did find this." Mòrag stood back up and held the item in Niall's direction; it was a soft, plush pink Nopon.

"Berryjammy!" Niall said excitedly as he ran back into his room and took the plush Nopon from his sister. He smiled and hugged the plushie to his chest.

"Wasn't that the stuffed Nopon you lost a few days ago?" Mòrag asked. Niall nodded vigorously, still hugging the Nopon tightly to his chest.

"No wonder you couldn't find it," Brighid started as she stood up as well. "It was lodged in a place that's nearly impossible to see or reach."

"Either way, there were no monsters of any kind under your bed," Mòrag continued. "Only your Nopon. Do you think you'll be able to get back to sleep now?"

"Oh yes, I can sleep now, really and truly," Niall answered, significantly happier than he was earlier. "You and Lady Brighid did a really good job checking and you found my Berryjammy!"

"Good. Now go back to sleep. It's far past your bedtime."

Standing up on his bed, Niall was almost as tall as Brighid and Mòrag. Before complying with his sister's request, he threw his arms around the Fire Blade.

"Thank you, Lady Brighid!" He said happily. Brighid smiled warmly and hugged him back.

"It was my pleasure, Lord Niall." Brighid replied. Niall then went over to Mòrag and hugged her as well.

"Thank you, Mòrag! You're the best big sister ever!" Niall said joyfully. Mòrag couldn't help but laugh a little.

"You're very kind, Niall. Now let's get you back to bed," Mòrag answered kindly. She lifted the sheets on his bed. "Under the covers now."

Niall crawled under the covers and snuggled in, still holding his plush Berryjammy to his chest. Mòrag looked at him fondly before placing a soft kiss on her brother's forehead.

"Sleep well, dear brother," Mòrag started. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Nighty night, sister. Nighty night, Lady Brighid." Niall said through a yawn as he snuggled deeper under the covers.

"Good night, Lord Niall." Brighid replied as she gently ran her fingers through Niall's hair. She looked over at Mòrag and, with her Keen Eye ability, saw how exhausted her Driver truly was. "Lady Mòrag, I think it's time for you to turn in for the night as well. I'll escort you back to your room if you'd like."

"Yes, thank you, Brighid" Mòrag replied as she stood up and followed Brighid.

Before she left, Mòrag looked towards her brother one last time and smiled. She shut the lights off and quietly left, leaving the young boy feeling safe and secure in his monster-free room.

 **End Notes: Berryjammy was my favorite Nopon name from the original Xenoblade Chronicles. I needed to work the name Berryjammy into one of my fics somehow.**


End file.
